Beautiful! Where is this nesivos Shalom, Parshas Shmini?

It reminds me a bit of Chizuk e-mail 341 on this page from the Nesivos Shalom... similar message.

guardureyes wrote on 19 Apr 2009 18:32:

Yes it is parshas shemini.  The first half of what I quoted, regarding Aharon, is the third shtickle. The second idea regarding rebuilding the mishkan is the towards the end of the second shtickle. But the same concepts can also be found in the first shtickle. I was mekatzor, so it is worthwhile to look it up inside. His shtickles on tazria and metzora are also very uplifting for baalei teshuva.

Thank you for the chizuk email. The email is not quite the same idea as this idea, but I can see how this has reminded you a bit of it.  But the amazing hashgacha pratis is that I have been working on yagon (sorrow) and understanding what it really means.  I have read the Rabeinu Yona many times in my life.  However, for the first time in my life, a week and a half before pesach, I noticed one line of the Rabeinu Yonah that I never noticed before.  He writes, similar to what you quoted from the nesivos shalom that the root of yagon is not about feeling sorrow but about hitting the concealed neshama deep within.  He says the reason why Hashem will always forgive a person with yagon, is because since the teshuvah eminates from the deep spirit within it is as if the one of the precious princes of Hashem are asking for forgiveness.  How could Hashem turn down the princes who are so close to him.  I have been contemplating this idea for quite a while.  And all of a sudden I began to understand so many other memras of chazal in this new light.  The idea is important for both a person who is still sunken in aveira and a person who began picking himself up.  For a person still in the aveira, he must always makes sure not to destroy the inner core.  He must remain attached.  This is what you were addressing in the email.  The second idea is that when a person removes himself from aveira, he needs to uncover that inner spirit even more and let it shine.  So thank you for bringing this to the forefront again.  I hope to elaborate more on this wonderful idea at a later date. 

Wonderful. Yasher Koach!

I was contemplating the vort I wrote about yesterday (click here to read it if you have not already) and realized an added thought that I wanted to share with everyone. Hope you all enjoy.

I wrote about how the rebuilding of the mishkan during the seven days of miluim is to teach a lesson in teshuva; that no matter how many times a person falls he needs to get back up and start rebuilding.  Today I want to add a new lesson that we can learn from this.  I made the obvious observation that the mishkan did not actually fall down, rather it was taken down.  Moshe Rabeinu took it down and then rebuilt it.  Some say he did this three times a day.  Why did he do this? Because there was no hashraas hashechina.  He had to keep rebuilding it until finally there was hashraas hashechina.  Even though bnei yisroel built the mishan precisely the way Hashem commanded them, for some reason (which I hope to explain another time) the building did not bring the ultimate purpose of hashraas hashechina.  The reaction of Moshe was to rebuild it; start over.  If a person is building an airplane and he was successful at building the structure but the engine fails tio work, the reaction is probably focus on the engine.  There is no need to start over again with the structure.  However, we see from here that Avodas Hashem is different.  Even if a person is doing everything right, and he does not fall, but he loses his excitement for avodas hashem  (or never attained it) and is not doing the mitzvos with the same ahaava and simcha that he should be doing it, the reaction should be to start over again.  Go back to the foundations and rebuild yourself.

Rav Nachman writes precisely this principles. He says an eitza for a person that is doing all the mitzvos, but does not have excitement, the advise is start over again.

For many baalei teshuva (myself included), the first few weeks of teshuva are the most intense.  The reason is because on the day a person does teshuvah, he ascends to the throne of glory (Rokeach, quoted by taharas hakodesh).  The other reason is because we all get excited from hischadshus (new things). He feels great excitement, encouragement and inspiration in everything he is doing.  It is easy to come to shul on time and daven with intense kavana. But then the plateau syndrome kicks in.  He wants more, but does not know where to go.  He does not feel like he flying anymore.  It takes maturity and proper insight to say to himself to start over.  This might mean going through the exact same steps the first time.  Doing nothing different.  But doing it over again can lead to hashraas hashechina.

In conclusion, we have two types of people on this site.  We have those that are struggling and keep falling.  For those people we remind them that no matter how many times the mishkan falls, you must rebuild.  It will take eight days, but you will reach your eight days.  Eight is also symbolic of above nature.  To break free of your natural self is supernatural; but with stubborn efforts, perseverance and display of commitment, Hashem will grant that new person, the new nature, to you.  And to those people who feel that they have reached that point of breaking free but realize that their excitement in avodas hashem and fullfilling teshuva shleima is not strong enough, they need to rebuild.  Go back to the basics.  Go back to the foundations of Yahadus.  Go back to the steps you took.  Read the books that inspired you the first time.  You will be inspired again and fly even higher.

B'Lvavi Mishkan Evne - In my heart I will a build a mishkan (based on the song from the sefer chareidim)

Hi Ykv,

Thank you for the beautiful dvar Torah and your insightful ha'aros.

It is not easy to continue falling and then getting back up.  The y"h wants us to get down on ourselves and proclaims "what's the point in continuing?".

My dear friends, we must realize that this is in the most literal terms a life and death struggle.

The Villna Goan states ... how should a person know what their purpose and personal nissayon for coming to this world is?  What is our most intimate and personal challenge that is the reason for our very creation?

The Villna Goan answers ... it is that which is most difficult for us and that which challenges us most frequently.

For many of us here ... battling and ultimately defeating this y"h may be the reason why we were brought down to this world in the first place.

Listen to Ykv and the powerful message he has shared with us ...

If you fall, get back up .... ki l'cach notzarta 

Thank you shomer for your extra insights.  Were you referring to the GR"A in Mishlei 4,13?

Hi Ykv,

I have seen this GR"A brought down in likut sefarim, not sure if this is indeed the source.

B'Hemshech to this:

I think I saw by R' Chaim Shmuelevitz z"tl, that we see in the Torah it says:

And Moshe Hakim Es Hamishkan....  (Moshe "singlehandedly" lifted up the Mishkan). Now, we know that the Torah does not exaggerate. Yet, how can it be that Moshe Rabbeinu could do such an unnatural feat. If we were to make a cheshbon of how heavy the Mishkan was.....it would be impossible, yet....the Torah says, "MOSHE Hakim....."

We learn from this, that when somebody reallly really WANTS to do something, and he puts his ALL into it. All of his ratzon, (even though it is physically impossible)... Since he put his ALL into it, then Hashem gives it to him as if he did it all by himself.

We see this also with Aron Hakohen. The Torah says that he single handedly picked up and was manif each and every one of the kohanim. And he did this in a very small amount of time. Once again we see that for a human being to pick up all of the kohanim, we can make a cheshbon how many thousands there where, and how many hours he had in order to do this), we are left with something that is humanely impossible. Yet, the Torah gives him the credit that HE did it. Even though he had to have had help min hashamayim, he was given the credit as if he did it himself. Why...because of his RATZON.

Isn't this what we are all doing here?  If we really and sincerally want to do it. To be M'taher, no matter how hard it could be...then Hashem will come and "give it to us", (as if we did it all by ourselves).

Thanks for sharing.

me wrote on 22 Apr 2009 11:20:


Yes, indeed, he mentions this idea a few times throughout his sichos. It can be found in 1971, sicha 21; 1972, sicha 13 and 1972,sicha 28. Each time he focuses on a a slightly different angle. However, the idea is not quite the way you quoted in terms of ratzon.  Ratzon alone is not enough.  His main focus is in terms of actions.  However, the truth is, that is just technicalities.  A person who wants, tries.  A person who does not try, does not really want, he only wants to want. The Rabeinu Yona (towards the end of shaarei avodah) writes that the yesod of bechira is the ratzon, but then adds that a person who really wants, tries.  So, I guess the two are tied together.  But to be fair, R' Chaim Shmuelevitz z"tl's emphasis was on trying and defining the a gibor and what it means to be zariz.

R' Chaim Shmuelevitz z"tl explains how a person is expected to put all his efforts into everything in life.  A true Gibor is someone who utilizes all his strength. This is what he emphasizes in the first sicha I mentioned.  However, in the second sicha he elaborates on the idea of success.  He points out how success in life, both in gashmiyus and ruchniys does not come from man but from Hashem.  Hashem wants us to try, but the results come from Him.  In the last sicha I mentioned he focuses how this is true for a kovesh B'yitzro.  When Chazal say that a strong person is someone who conquers his nature, it means that a person fought with all his might.  True, the results are from Hashem , but the efforts are from man. 

In all three sichos he draws upon the medresh from Moshe Rabeinu who was called a gibor for putting up the mishkan (based on the Rosh in nedarim, 38a).  Even though it was done by a nes, but since Moshe Rabeinu tried with all his might, Hashem gave him success and it was called by his name, as me explained.  And on top of that he is considered a Gibor for trying.

I have what to add to this wonderful principle.  Perhaps another time.

Rav Yitzchal Isaac Sher writes towards the end of his דברים אחדים to cheshbon hanefesh (a sefer reprinted with the encouragement of Rav Yisroel Salanter. Originally written in the early 1800's.  Probably one of the very few mussar seferim that deal with addictive behavior.  He uses the addiction of drinking and smoking as an example of a person trying to break addictive behavior):  "This is known to everyone, that help from Hashem is in proportion to his efforts to purify himself" [a bit out of context]

I have written the following quote before and guard now uses it for chizuk.  It ties in very nicely to the Reb Chaim.
Ykv_schwartz wrote on 12 Feb 2009 22:51:

. 

Yes indeed, as ALL results come only from Hashem, so the only thing we have to offer are our efforts.

B"H, I was zoche to go to tzefas and meron today.  It was a full day of davening.  I spent about an 1 1/2 hours at Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai's kever.  I was zoche to to say the entire tikun clali.  I brought the list of all our wonderful and brave warriors from GUE and davened for all of us. I cried myself away to be accepted for teshuvah and to give me guidance.  I went into the Arizal's mikveh and lost all sensation of my body. .  While I was in the mikvah I cold not focus on any of the kavanah that I normally do with clarity.  So I simply cried.  I visited the kever of Beis Yosef, Arizal, Mabit, RaMaK, Hoshea HaNavi, Chovos Halevavos, and others.  I could not find Rabbi Chaim Vital.  I thought he was buried there.  I probably just couldn't locate it.

May everyone be zoche for a chodesh tov.

zolst hubbin gepoilt alles Gitts

ykv you are a REAL YID!!!

I think reb chaim vittal is buried in damascus syria zechusoi yugein aleinu

I thought I felt something special today!  :D

Also, someone just donated today a $500 advertising campaign on Arutz Sheva for two months. Who knows if it wasn't in the Zechus of your teffilos? ;D

Thank you Guard.

bardichev wrote on 23 Apr 2009 20:08:

Thank you bardichev.  You are right.  I was confused how he ended up there.  I looked it up in the Chida.  The Arizal died in Av 1573.  Sometime after that point Reb Chaim went to Yerushalyim to be the leader there. It is not clear when he went.  However, the Chida says he found a document with Reb Chaim's signature from 1584.  He received smicha from the beis Yosef in 1590.  While in Yerushalyim, the Arab ruler realized there is a flowing stream near har habyis, but is locked. He inquired about the matter, being the fact that he needed water.  He found out that Chizkia the king locked up the gate to this stream (called the Gichon) during the siege of sancheriv (2,000 years beforehand!).  He asked how it could be open and was told that Reb Chaim is the holiest person around and he could probably open it up.  So the Arab ruler told Reb Chaim that if it is not open by the time this ruler walks to har bayis, he will kill Reb Chaim.  Rab Chaim was scared for his life and miraculously went to Damascus.  He did this using the shem hashem and was able to attain keftitzas haderech. While in Damascus the Arizal came to him in a dream and told him that he should have opened up the gate.  Reb Chaim explained that he would require the Shem Hashem to open up the gate and he did not want to use it.  The arizal told him that since he ended up using the the shem hashem for keftitzas haderech, he has no excuses anymore.  He then explained to reb chaim that the chachmim condemned the acts of chizkia of closing up the gichon. This Arab ruler was a gilgul of sancheriv and Reb Chaim is a spark of chizkia.  Now was the chance to fix the wrongdoings of chizkia.  And had Reb Chaim opened up the gates, the Geula would have started.  Reb Chaim responded that he obviously was not aware of the great tikun of opening the gates and he will go back to yerushalyim and open up the gates.  The Arizal told him that the appropriate time has already past.  Too Late!

May we all be zoche to open up our personal gates, let our neshama flow forth and begin our personal Geula. Do not wait! Now is the time!